Rich offenders laugh at fines

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Rich people should pay bigger fines for speeding or parking
illegally, a think tank has proposed.

In a paper released yesterday, the Australia Institute's
director, Clive Hamilton, proposes that fines be determined as a
percentage of taxable income, as that is the only way a fine can
deter wealthy offenders. "Some rich Australians consciously break
the law knowing that paying any fine will have a negligible effect
on them," he said.

Under the proposed scheme, a $125 speeding fine would be reduced
to $75, or 16 per cent of income, for people earning less than
$30,000 a year. An offender earning more than $100,000 would face a
$385 penalty. However, Dr Hamilton says the fine should be set at
the highest level, with people having to produce tax records or
concession cards to prove they are on a lower income and eligible
for a reduction.

Such a scheme, while not "perfectly fair", would be "much fairer
than the existing flat fine system", the report says.

The proposal follows a similar plan in Britain. Such schemes
already operate in Germany, France, Portugal, Greece and
Scandinavian countries, the report says.